John Terry is considering an appeal after the FA's disciplinary hearing found him guilty of "using abusive language" towards QPR's Anton Ferdinand last October which "included a reference to colour and/or race".

The independent regulatory commission delivered its verdict on Thursday after a four-day hearing, ruling that Terry must serve a four-game ban and pay a fine of £220,000.

Terry, who was cleared of a racially aggravated public order offence at Westminster magistrates court in July over the same incident, categorically denied the FA charge, and has the right to appeal the ruling within 14 days.

An FA statement said: "The penalty is suspended until after the outcome of any appeal, or the time for appealing expires, or should Mr Terry decide not to appeal."

A statement issued by Terry's management company said: "Mr Terry is disappointed that the FA Regulatory Commission has reached a different conclusion to the clear not guilty verdict of a court of law. He has asked for the detailed written reasons of the decision and will consider them carefully before deciding whether to lodge an appeal."

The case centred around an incident during Chelsea's Premier League defeat at QPR on 23 October last year when the pair repeatedly clashed verbally.

During his court case Terry admitted using the words "fucking black cunt", but insisted he had only been repeating words he thought Ferdinand had accused him of saying.

Terry's legal team had argued that the governing body's own rules dictated that his acquittal in court meant the case could not proceed but the FA believed its charge was distinct from the court charge.

The panel responsible for banning the Liverpool striker Luis Suárez for eight games when they found him guilty of racially abusing Manchester United's Patrice Evra last season declared at that time that simply using racist language was enough to constitute a breach of FA rules.

Chelsea issued a statement that said: "Chelsea Football Club notes and respects today's decision by the Football Association regarding John Terry. We also recognise that John has the right to appeal that decision.

"It is therefore inappropriate for us to comment further on the matter at this time."